Godsent Top Star [EN]: Chapter 369

Gabriel, who had returned from the campaign shoot, looked extremely refreshed.

[20]

Yeonwoo stared at the number above Gabriel’s head.

‘It’s doubled.’

Something very small was poking its head out from the deeply rooted seed.

‘Has it sprouted?’

Although cotyledons [seed leaves] hadn’t appeared yet, it was certain that it had sprouted.

‘It’s tiny.’

However, compared to when it had only taken root, it was a remarkable growth.

It was indeed a good choice.

The public service advertisement campaign proceeded in a documentary format, as the officials had explained in advance.

“I thought I had resolved everything with Jennifer, but it seems that wasn’t the case. I feel like I went to psychological therapy rather than a commercial shoot.”

Gabriel had not only the problem with his spiritual sight but also all sorts of messy rumors tangled around him.

Even if Gabriel provided the initial cause, malicious rumors such as drug use and alcoholism were excessive.

Since Gabriel didn’t say anything, the rumors born from prejudice grew even larger.

That led to the cold stares he received on set.

‘When did they say the advertisement would air? Before the movie release, right?’

If Gabriel, who had calmly expressed his pain and recovered, announced a successful comeback with the movie, the effect of the advertisement would be even greater.

“Are you trembling less now?”

“Yeah… I feel better knowing that I won’t only receive criticism when I stand in front of the camera. …This, Yeonwoo, you planned this, didn’t you?”

“How could I plan an advertisement?”

“They only called you there. And I was recommended by you.”

“Well… it’s all for the best.”

“I keep owing you.”

“You call yourself a friend? What debt is there between friends?”

“…Is that so?”

“If you’re going to say embarrassing things, let’s practice the script.”

After filming the public service advertisement campaign.

Gabriel, who had grown a bit more, became calmer than before.

‘Just until recently, he couldn’t even practice the script properly.’

Back then, he was almost like a machine.

What should I say?

Rather than truly immersing himself in the script and becoming the character…

It felt like he was just reciting lines out of obligation.

‘If he had stayed like that, Director Jonas would have torn him apart.’

And the young seed might not have sprouted properly and rotted away.

“Did they say today is the first scene?”

“Yeonwoo. Will it be okay? I won’t mess it up, will I?”

“You’ve practiced so much, there’s no way you’ll mess it up.”

“I still can’t relax. Practice with me even when we get there. I feel like I can immerse myself better when I practice with you, so it would be good to film right after.”

It was natural.

‘How could he not immerse himself when I’m using my abilities to play the opposite role?’

Anyway, I have to nurture that young sprout well.

To be precise, it’s still just a young seed that hasn’t even become a sprout yet.

“Finally filming together, Gabriel. How long has it been? Has it already been more than 10 years?”

“It’s been 20 years. I wasn’t even ten years old back then.”

The atmosphere at the filming location upon arrival wasn’t bad.

‘The staff’s atmosphere is still not great.’

But after today’s filming.

That not-so-great atmosphere will probably change 180 degrees.

The first to greet us was Raymond.

“What’s this? Coming so early. You used to show up last.”

“Why are you talking about 20 years ago? I’m not the same as back then.”

Gabriel grumbled with an embarrassed face.

“Hmm. You’re staking your life on this role, so it must be true? But you’ll have to wait a long time; are you okay with that? There are several scenes today.”

“I have to wait. What else can I do?”

“Wow. You’ve grown up, Gabriel?”

“I’ve been grown up for a long time?!”

Seeing them bickering, I definitely get the feeling that they’re old friends.

Raymond went into filming first.

“Yeonwoo. Let’s practice.”

Strictly speaking, Gabriel’s filming schedule is in the afternoon.

Even though he appears in quite a few scenes for a cameo, they’re still short scenes.

It means he didn’t have to come as soon as the set opened.

‘He must have wanted to feel the atmosphere on set.’

Although his fear of the camera was diluted while filming the public service advertisement.

The tension of standing in front of the screen again after almost 10 years was still there.

‘Well. It doesn’t matter. There’s no reason to dislike him trying to grow on his own.’

There are more than a few people who just open their mouths and expect to be spoon-fed without doing anything.

There are also quite a few people with the thieving mentality of trying to succeed by just landing a good sponsor without putting in any effort.

It’s not just a story I heard.

‘I’ve even seen some of them myself.’

I still vividly remember that idiot who openly asked me to connect them with a sponsor.

There were also fools who were parachuted in [given a role or position due to connections] and then acted like it was their own power.

But how is Gabriel in comparison?

‘For someone who once sat at the top and then fell, he doesn’t just try to stay in his past glory. He’s a decent human being in his own way…….’

Yeonwoo didn’t dislike those who made an effort.

No.

Rather, what should I say?

I felt it was commendable.

‘But I feel like this is because of the gardening effect [tendency to be more generous to those one cares for]……?’

Generally, people tend to be endlessly generous to those they care for.

Well, even considering that, there was no lie in the fact that Gabriel was making an effort.

That’s also why Yeonwoo readily accepted playing the opposite role.

“It’s joyful news. It’s right to celebrate on such a good day.”

In a corner of the wide set.

An untidy space with disorganized materials scattered around.

Gabriel’s eyes, sitting on one side, changed.

“Oh my god, good heavens. To think that we’ve become close enough to share such congratulations because of this connection.”

The chaotic space suddenly became a dimly lit, heavy-aired secret room.

Even Gabriel, who was chuckling, was not Gabriel at this moment.

John Doe.

A very ordinary name.

And such an unremarkable name that can be attached to anyone, especially to an unidentified person.

And the man was already John Doe for the nth time.

“Are you planning to go out yourself?”

Yeonwoo, who was standing silently next to him, said.

To be exact, he was just an unnamed man 1, a subordinate of John Doe.

“Boss. It’s quite dangerous. It’s not good to provoke him on purpose.”

This time, he recited the lines of man 2.

It was a subtle change in tone.

“Who told you to make a judgment on your own?”

A cold atmosphere settled in the secret room.

When John Doe, who had been chuckling with an angelic face, hardened his face, only coolness lingered in that place.

“Look. Think about it. Who in the world would know? That I’m that John Doe? Look at me.”

John Doe exaggeratedly raised both arms.

“Where on me looks like a villain, huh? A businessman from a poor orphanage. Who on earth would think of me as a villain when they see this decent social position I’ve achieved through more effort than others.”

John Doe muttered gloomily.

“You know that there’s someone else who made me a devil, right? Don’t you?”

Yeonwoo, no, man 1, walked forward.

Looking at John Doe’s face, which was staring blankly into the air with eyes that couldn’t see anywhere, he silently put his hand into his pocket.

“Please accept it.”

John Doe, who is a villain but cannot be called only a villain.

The hidden leader of the forces that opposed Black throughout the first and second episodes.

However, for such a person, a very complex and tired face is faintly visible on his angelic profile.

“Haha……. Yes. I need to calm down now.”

John Doe accepted the cigar that man 1 handed him.

He puts the end to the fire held out in front of him and takes a few breaths to light it.

“You don’t have to look at me like that.”

John Doe waved his hand gently.

“Even if you don’t look at me like that, I know my job well. Don’t worry, I won’t let it be ruined.”

John Doe, who said that with a sigh, closed his eyes.

And when he opened them again, he was Gabriel.

“How is it, does it seem okay?”

“Yes, well. It’s not bad.”

“Tsk. It can’t just be not bad.”

This scene that we just practiced was the part where the leader of the group that persistently tormented Black was revealed for the first time.

Of course, this wasn’t the first scene Gabriel appeared in.

But it was the first scene to film.

“It doesn’t seem too out of place, does it? What if I get a lot of retakes?”

It wasn’t for nothing that he had been coming to the set several times.

Gabriel watched Raymond’s acting, interpreted the script in his own way, and analyzed the character of Black that Raymond was playing.

While getting used to the atmosphere on set, he reconstructed the character of John Doe by adding his own interpretation to the character of Black.

‘Even I think he seems to have drawn the character quite well.’

I don’t have the ability to immediately know whether it will be successful or not like Kwon Seong-hyeon.

But Yeonwoo had a sense that he had unintentionally honed for a long time.

“I have to show it properly here…….”

In the script, John Doe was simply described as a dualistic madman.

Since John Doe wasn’t the final villain, there wasn’t much elaborate character setting.

‘The audience may think John Doe is the final villain, but…….’

Therefore, John Doe seems like a mastermind, but funnily enough, he’s not a very important character.

You can think of it as a kind of MacGuffin [a plot device that drives the story forward].

It’s ambiguous because it’s not completely unrelated to the story, but anyway.

‘But it’s a waste of a character to just do it carelessly. If I bring him to life, I can give more weight to the latter half.’

That was the judgment Yeonwoo made after reading the script dozens of times and memorizing it.

The role that John Doe plays as a cameo isn’t that great.

It’s just a kind of trick device to deceive the audience from the beginning.

However, from Yeonwoo’s point of view, who had grasped the overall flow, it was rather a disappointing character.

‘If I bring this to life a little more, the latter half of the story will be a little more dramatic.’

Gabriel seemed to be thinking similarly.

He deliberately uses his appearance to smile brightly and shows a crazy smile that doesn’t suit him.

While speaking kindly, his judgment to kill people is cruel and cold.

-You have to establish the character well now. That way, it won’t be awkward when you match up with Raymond when you go into the front part of the filming.

The more John Doe stands out.

The more unfortunate the personal history inflicted on Black becomes.

The more the protagonist’s situation worsens and becomes difficult, the more dramatic the scene will be when he overcomes everything later.

“It seems like we have time, so can we do it one more time?”

“Yes, well…….”

It’s not the first appearance scene, but it’s a scene where John Doe hits the audience in the back of the head about what kind of person he is.

In the future, it will be revealed that this scene of hitting the back of the head is actually a backstab.

But.

“What did you just say?”

Gabriel asked back as if he was dumbfounded.

Regardless of whether he did or not.

Director Jonas was strangely shining his eyes and busy looking back and forth between Yeonwoo and Gabriel.